Outrider #05 - Built to Kill

Robert Tine’s ‘Outrider’ series comes to a premature ending with book five, “Built to Kill”. Genre fans hold the series in high regard – keeping in mind that it’s a fun, senseless ride that doesn’t convey any realism or seriousness. It’s 80s post-nuke fiction with all of the characteristics or stereotypes that go with it. The publisher, Pinnacle, was sold shortly after this book’s release in 1985, bringing to a halt the series with a promised book six (pictured below) never reaching fruition. Regardless, this closing chapter has a great makeshift ending that wraps up storylines and characters from the past four novels. I’m extremely satisfied with calling this book the ultimate finale.

Each of the past four novels had our hero Bonner battling marauders, gangs and tyrants in each of North American’s new territories – Slavestates, Hotstates and Snowstates. Chicago, where Bonner and other loners live, has always been a neutral city surrounded by dried up lake Michigan. It’s a hard area to attack, made even more difficult with the amount of firepower possessed by these loners and renegades. However, arch enemy Leatherman poses a scheme to align the territorial leaders into a collective combat force to take Chicago. It sounds awesome on paper…but realistically we just know Leatherman plans to eliminate everyone but his own forces. He wants to rule the whole continent and thinks the downfall of Chicago will be the best opportunity.

The author brings in all of the familiar characters of the series – Beck, Bonner, The Means, Clara, Lucky and even a surprise visit from a guy named Starling. At times it’s intentionally humorous and I found myself laughing out loud at the antics of Starling and Beck. Lucky actually plays a big part in the book, moving him from under the hood to a spot in the front seat. I always liked the character and it was really entertaining to see more of him. From an action stance, the novel does spend a lot of time setting up what is essentially a 10-page fight. I thought the inevitable confrontation between Leatherman and Bonner was more fizzle than spark. The book could have been fleshed out with a little more action but publishing and time restraints probably limited the author’s creative force. Overall, this series was highly entertaining and closed out perfectly in my opinion. Grab copies of these books and keep them safe and dry. Pass them on down the line and let the next generation explore this wacky and wild genre we know and love.

Buy a copy of this book HERE